Optical recording using a photochromic ferroelectric liquid crystal

The direction of molecular switching, i.e., the sign of the electro-optic response, in ferroelectric liquid crystals depends on the polarity of the applied electric field as well as on the sign of the spontaneous polarization. Light-induced switching of the molecules by ultraviolet light was found in a photochromic ferroelectric liquid crystal at fixed field polarity. A high contrast image was recorded whose contrast could easily be inverted by reversing the field polarity. Moreover, in the presence of bistable boundary conditions, the optically recorded image can be stored after removal of the electric field. The effect of light-assisted switching in the photochromic ferroelectric liquid crystal seems to be promising for applications such as optical recording, all-optical switches, and image storage.